Members of a teachers’ union have threatened industrial action in September if the government fails to implement phase two of a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) they signed.

The government was to pay teachers new salaries in July but failed to honour the deal, said Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (Kuppet) Kisii County executive secretary Joseph Abincha said.

He added that teachers expect the government to pay before schools reopen in September.

Abincha (pictured)noted that the government had said it lacked funds to pay the teachers, stressing that the agreement had been deposited in court and the government had pledged to pay.

“We are going to boycott classes till the government pays us. You either pay us or we will be forced to go to the streets like the Gen Z” Abincha said at Nyachogochogo Mixed Secondary School in Kisii County on prize-giving day for the 2023 KCSE exam candidates who passed and are set to join university.

Abincha expressed concerns over the government’s proposal to reduce free secondary education funds from Sh22,000 to Sh17,000 per student, calling it wrong and unacceptable.

He implored the next Education Cabinet secretary not to allow it, noting that parents and guardians are could not afford to pay fees if the fund is slashed.

“It will be wrong for the government to reduce the capitation. Let the government look for money elsewhere and leave the fund intact,” Abincha said.

He urged the new minister to consult experts in education and ensure that jobs for teachers are advertised and that candidates are employed on merit, warning that the union would not accept teachers hired through the backdoor.

Gen Z protests

He challenged school children to stay safe by shunning Gen Z protests, and challenged parents to monitor their children

Echoing these sentiments, Nyamache sub-county secondary school heads association chairman Bernard Ochieng appealed to school principals to release children for the August holidays on Monday, Wednesday or Friday so that they are not caught up in youth protests.

“We do not want students to be on their way home when the protests are happening . I urge parents not to allow the children to go to the streets to join the protesters,” Ochieng said.